My all-time favorite game, every system here works perfectly together and the devs are constantly working to improve it even further. Dungeon exploration feels tense and exciting and provides very worthwhile rewards, the arena mode is a great way to get your fill of the combat, and the practice mode allows new players to get the hang of the very unique control scheme.

Then there's the combat itself. You may see people say it feels clunky and unpredictable, and it probably does for them, just as much as it would if you put a weapon in their untrained hands. BUT, with practice and time, the amount of control you have over your character in this game is unsurpassed. You can precisely strike ANY part of the enemy that you set your mind to, bypassing armor by stabbing at holes and slits, or trying to knock your opponent off their feet with a well-timed strike to the ankle. The versatility of the four possible attacks in this game is limitless.

THEN, you can now add in the thaumaturgy system (magic). Currently two schools exist, Force and Mind. Force is like you expect, push people around, throw rocks and random items, but it also has a couple more interesting abilities, like creating a bubble around yourself or a wall of energy to block off your foes. Additionally, you can amplify the impact of your weapon with magic to increase the oomph factor. Hitting hard feels so satisfying in this game anyway, adding even more to that is glorious.

Mind thaumaturgy has a wide range of utilities from sense minds, astral projection, to straight up necromancy, all of which are fun to play with in the intricate world Bare Mettle set up.

Speaking of the world, the little lore that is provided by books and scrolls that you can find scattered throughout the dungeons makes the world feel very lived in. The sheer amount of useless items (spoons, cups, pens, tools) makes it actually feel like you are exploring an abandoned society and makes finding useful items so much more thrilling.

This game is one of the most unique concepts I've ever played and never feels dull for a moment, even on replays. I've played through this game more times than I can count but every run is a little different due to certain randomized elements. Definitely give it a try, I doubt we will ever get a better game than this until Sui Generis

very interesting premise and incredibly solid execution, had great potential to either be an exemplary dungeon crawler with its own unique mechanics or the foundation to be something bigger. unfortunately the devs had a "vision" for it which includes making it intentionally obtuse and clunky for the charm of it (it is not charming, just irritating).

i played 9 hours total:
2 were spent wandering around aimlessly wondering where to go and what to do
2 were spent actually playing the game (very fun)
5 hours were completely lost due to the game's dogshit autosave system not saving during hours of gameplay before it crashed twice

Absolutely incredible experience and a great value. for 14.99 USD you essentially get 3 games; the core dungeon crawler experience, the gladiator manager sim, and the training minigame.

It can take some time to get used to the combat and the flow of motions but put in the practice and you'll surely be impressed.

My only issue is with some of the footwork when navigating harrowing spaces in the dungeon crawl. I've lost a few runs to a misstep into the void.

Not only that but there are many puzzles that require you to move objects to build bridges but the object moving process is tedium incarnate. You'll find yourself getting stuck on doors trying to move a bench from one room to another.

The latter is the most frustrating as moving and placing objects with left-click is an integral part of the experience; finding hidden notes under boxes, hitting a loot spot on the other side of a collapsed walkway -- you'd think they would have hammered out some of the bugs by now.

If you can look past that, you're in for a real treat. Enjoy!